Bowl Reflections...Teams on the Rise in '09

Bowl Season in Review-
Well, just like the economy, my bowl picks went south quickly. I began the bowl season with in a hole losing three of the first four and never was able to win my way out…I did choose the correct national champion in Florida, however my bowl season record was a less-than-impressive 19-15.
The bowl games did show a lot and give hope to some programs for the coming year…
And here are the top 10 teams of the bowl season-

10) Vanderbilt- I know, I know SEC homer. But look at what they have done. They defeated an ACC Runner-up Boston College soundly with a freshman quarterback and stingy defense. The Commodores will lose star receiver George Smith, BUT this win builds the program and puts them on the RISE in the SEC. Next year head coach Bobby Johnson will hope to improve on a 7-6 season, and with a young quarterback and some confidence it might happen.

9)Northwestern- Another smart school really impressed me. Although they lost to Missouri in the Alamo Bowl they battled the Tigers to the end, led the entire game but couldn’t defeat the more experienced Tigers in overtime. Northwestern finished the season with a 9-4 record and has a good majority of players coming back. Couple experience with a schedule that lacks Ohio State and Michigan and put the Wildcats on the rise in a less than stellar Big 10.

8)Oregon- The Ducks have won four straight heading into the offseason and had a GREAT performace in the Holiday Bowl taking down the Oklahoma State Cowboys 42-31. This offense looks good and a lot of them come back. Quarterback Jeremiah Masoli is only a sophomore and with a year of experience under his belt and a lot of players coming back the Ducks might be able to contend with the USC Trojans for Pac 10 supremacy.

7) Virginia Tech- To be honest, I gave a young Virginia Tech offense NO CHANCE in the Orange Bowl against the Big East’s Cincinnati Bearcats, but the Hookies overpowered the Bearcats just like they overpowered the ACC this season winning their last four games. Like Oregon, the Hookies return a fast quarterback in Tyrod Taylor and of their team only 15 players are seniors. Virginia Tech is on the rise and should compete once again in the ACC and maybe even for a national title.

6) LSU- Les Miles is now 4-0 in bowl games. The Tigers had a less than stellar year giving up points and yardage at a maximum and were unable to score or throw the ball down field with a young offense and two quarterback system. In the Chic FIl A Bowl, however, the Tigers were able to stop the option offense of Georgia Tech which stumped the Georgia Bulldogs in the final week of the season. The rebuilding seems to be over now, and look for the Tigers to be a more competitive team in a rising SEC West next year.

5) Arizona- Coach Stoops was finally able to make a bowl game for the first time in his tenure as head coach and the first time in school history since 1998. The Wildcats were excited to make a bowl game and outplayed and took down a more experienced BYU team. Arizona took USC to the wire and were competitive in all their games this season. Next year, the Wildcats will have to replace a lot of players but, the bowl victory should be a turning point for this program.

4) Utah- I couldn’t put a top 10 in bowl surprises with out the Utes. They came out and took down an SEC power in Alabama in the Sugar Bowl to finish as the only undefeated team in the FBS. Although i certainly would NOT put them at #1 in my final top 25, undefeated is undefeated and when you play in a conference that allows you to play schools like San Diego State and Wyoming on a yearly basis, its hard to respect an undefeated mark. But Utah now has 2 BCS trophies and enough talent to compete once or twice a year against power teams in BCS-sleighted conferences. The Utes have only 19 seniors this year, but in those seniors is stand out quarterback Brian Johnson. If the Utes can reload at quarterback, Utah should stay the cream of the crop in the Mountain West next year.

3) Florida State- Progress, progress, progress. That’s what it is all about in college sports and with a dominating win in the Champs Sports Bowl, I put the Seminoles as the ACC favorite next year. Bobby Bowden’s Seminoles destroyed Wisconsin 42-13 and has a quality team returning next year. Quarterback Christian Ponder, second leading rusher Jermaine Thomas, and four of their top five receivers are set to come back next year. Florida State should make a Penn State-like run next year and could possibly give Head Coach Bobby Bowden a BCS send off…

2) Ole Miss- Houston Nutt can flat out coach. Last year he led the Arkansas Razorbacks to the Cotton Bowl, but was unable to coach in the game due to him jumping ship to Oxford and the Rebels. In just one year he was able to turn a 3-9 team to a 9-4 Cotton Bowl champion team. The Rebels played their best football at the end of the season with big SEC victories in Arkansas, Auburn, and a beat down in Baton Rouge over the LSU Tigers. This impressive season for the Rebels is most highlighted by the victory in Gainesville over the National Champion Florida Gators. Next year the Rebels return quarterback Jevan Snead, running back Enrique Davis, and a solid experienced receiving core. But, Houston must retool the defense and line if he wants to contend more seriously in a rising SEC West division in 2009.

1) Florida Gators- Urban Meyer should have a National Champion favorite coming into the 2009 season. If quarterback Tim Tebow stays, the Gators will once again be a scary team to face. The defense is young and with a year of experience should be better. Look for the Gators to be the pre-season #1 pick by most national pundits.